In Brief: Wrestling fans in general seem to be down on Roman Reigns as a top star. But what about card collectors?

By Michael Moore, PWTorch Collectibles specialist

One year ago, wrestling fans began seeing signs that Roman Reigns was the next big thing. He was the only member of The Shield to defeat C.M. Punk one-on-one, he tore through the 2014 Royal Rumble and set a new record for eliminations, and shortly thereafter, The Shield turned babyface.

But, the 12 months in-between Royal Rumbles hasn’t gone the way most fans expected, and certainly it can’t be the way Vince McMahon had hoped. While Reigns hasn’t outright flopped, he has cooled considerably due to a series of bad satellite interviews, terribly scripted promos with awkward delivery, lack of improvement in the ring, and a Superstar of the Year Slammy that left many fans shaking their heads.

But, have collectors of wrestling cards soured on Reigns as a top star as much as some wrestling fans? A little less than a year ago, Reigns’s first certified autographed trading card from Topps became the hottest wrestling card on the market.

Throughout December 2013 and most of January 2014, Reigns’s signature from 2013 Topps Best of WWE was selling for less than $20. But savvy collectors quickly recognized what Reigns’s Royal Rumble performance meant: McMahon and WWE were grooming their next top star. Within a matter of weeks, Reigns’ signature jumped from less than $20 to an average price of close to $100.

Since then, Topps has produced two more sets that included signatures from Roman Reigns, with another set for 2015 just around the corner. Is supply exceeding demand? Or, are there still plenty of collectors who believe in Roman Reigns? Consider these key moments from 2014 that have impacted Reigns’s path to main event status and the value of his top cards.

January 2014. Reigns, a member of the heel faction The Shield, eliminates 12 men from the Royal Rumble match. He and a returning Dave Batista are the final two entrants in the Rumble. Fans hoping for a Daniel Bryan victory completely reject WWE's babyface push of Batista and begin cheering for the heel Reigns. Sales of Reigns’s 2013 Topps Best of WWE Autograph creeps upward to an average sale price of $28.80 from $17.75 in December 2013.

March 2014. Reigns, Seth Rollins, and Dean Ambrose begin a feud with Kane and the New Age Outlaws and head into WrestleMania as babyfaces. Reigns is clearly positioned as the leader of The Shield and WWE’s hand-picked future star. The average sale price of his 2013 Topps Autograph more than doubles from January to $62.33, with some sales topping $100.

June 2014. Rollins turns heel, effectively breaking up The Shield. Reigns is instantly thrust into the main event picture. Topps releases 2014 Topps WWE Chrome, which includes an on-card autograph of Roman Reigns, along with several serial numbered parallels. This becomes the Reigns card of choice for many collectors, replacing the 2013 Topps card. The average sale price of the 2014 Topps Chrome card is $77.90, forcing the average sale price of the 2013 Topps card down to $53.54.

October 2014. Reigns is pulled from the September Night of Champions pay-per-view after undergoing emergency surgery. While Reigns is out of action, Topps releases a third wrestling product, 2014 Topps WWE Road to WrestleMania. This set includes a few different Reigns autographs, increasing supply at a time when demand seems somewhat stagnant. The average sale price for Reigns’s basic autograph from this new product is $46.17. Fewer 2013 Topps and 2014 Topps Chrome cards sell on eBay. This card appears more plentiful (and, as a result, less valuable) than either of Reigns’s previous autographs.

November 2014 to December 2014. Upon his return to WWE television, Reigns is named Superstar of the Year and the first entrant in the 2015 Royal Rumble. During this time, fewer 2013 Topps and 2014 Topps Chrome cards sell on eBay than at any other point in 2014. Collectors may be satisfied with the cheaper 2014 Topps Road to WrestleMania Autograph, and sellers may be holding back on the older autographs to avoid lower sale prices until Reigns gets hot again. The average sale price of Reigns’s 2014 Topps Road to WrestleMania holds relatively steady, from $46.17 in October to $44.99 in December.

Final Thoughts. Reigns isn’t setting the world on fire like he was during Spring 2014, but card collectors haven’t given up on him. Judging by sales trends, they still believe that Reigns is on his way to becoming a top star, whether that’s in 2015 or 2016.

The $100-plus sales of Reigns’s 2013 Topps signature in March 2014 realistically weren’t going to continue, and since sales settled down into the $50-65 range, the card seems to be holding its value.

Collectors who are willing to pay a premium are buying the 2014 Topps Chrome autograph, while those looking for more of a bargain are settling for the 2014 Topps Road to WrestleMania autograph.

PWTorch Collectibles Specialist Michael Moore can be reached at michaelmoorewriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @MMooreWriter.

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